Maverick County’s First and Only Hanging to Be Retold at Historic Riskind Building
By Jose G. Landa, Copyright 2026 Eagle Pass Business Journal, Inc.
The Eagle Pass Main Street Program will bring one of Maverick County’s most haunting historical chapters back to life Friday, September 18, 2026 during an evening of storytelling at the Historic Riskind Building.
“Maverick County History Comes to Life” will begin at 7 p.m. and feature Jeff Taylor, Joe Cruz and Pete Macias, who will recount the story of Dick Duncan and the first and only execution by hanging carried out in Maverick County.
The presentation will take place exactly 135 years after Duncan was executed on September 18, 1891, at the former Maverick County Jail located between the old and current county courthouses.
The case began in 1889 after four bodies were discovered along the Rio Grande.
Historical accounts identified the victims as members of the Williamson family.
The first victim found was a middle-aged woman whose skull had been crushed.
During the following week, authorities discovered three additional victims, including a man and woman in their twenties and a teenage girl. Each had reportedly suffered similar fatal injuries.
The killings became front-page news in newspapers across Texas. Authorities initially had no clear leads and did not know the identities of the victims or where they had come from.
The Maverick County sheriff eventually sought assistance from Texas Ranger Frank Jones, captain of the Frontier Battalion, who assigned Ranger Ira Aten to investigate.
Several weeks later and approximately 250 miles north in San Saba, Aten began piecing together the family’s identity and the circumstances surrounding its disappearance.
A farmer reportedly told Aten that his neighbors, the Williamsons, had suddenly left during the night after selling their property to a local man named Dick Duncan. Aten later learned that Duncan had purchased a wagon and claimed that he planned to use it to take the Williamsons into Mexico.
Aten eventually located Duncan in the San Saba jail, where he was being held on an unrelated minor offense.
During questioning, Duncan reportedly offered information that Aten had not disclosed, including speculation that Mexican bandits had killed the Williamsons for their money.
Historical accounts indicate Aten had not told Duncan about the killings or that the family may have been carrying a large amount of cash.
Suspecting Duncan knew more than he should have, Aten persuaded local authorities to keep him incarcerated while the Ranger returned to Eagle Pass and secured the prosecutor’s cooperation.
In July 1889, a 12-member jury convicted Duncan of murder and sentenced him to death.
A gallows was later constructed inside the Maverick County Jail. Attendance at the execution was limited to 25 invited witnesses.
Duncan was hanged on September 18, 1891, becoming the first and last person executed by hanging in Maverick County.
Friday’s presentation will revisit the people, investigation, trial and legacy surrounding the case while highlighting the importance of preserving local history through storytelling.
Visitors are also encouraged to explore the Art and Culture Center inside the Riskind Building, stroll through historic Fort Duncan and visit the Fort Duncan Museum to learn more about the development of Eagle Pass and the surrounding region.
